Danzo's Tea

After exiting the alley.

The group didn't head to the Root base, but instead arrived at the Konoha Riverbank, in front of a teahouse built under a willow tree.

"Lord Danzo has been waiting for a long time, please come in."

Aburame Ryoma stepped aside, making a gesture of invitation.

This teahouse had a tiled roof and occupied less than ten square meters. The entrance, especially the opening for entry and exit, was very low.

It was a square just 60 centimeters across.

"Is this a dog door? How am I supposed to get in with such a small entrance?" Dan frowned, as he was too large.

Seeing this, Itachi, worried Dan might misunderstand, took the initiative to explain:

"Uncle, guests must bend their knees to enter the teahouse. This isn't to make things difficult, but to embody the spirit of equality and humility in the tea ceremony.

When any guest enters in this manner, it signifies leaving their status and rank outside, entering a non-secular world.

I believe Lord Danzo chose to meet us in a teahouse to show us equality and friendship."

Although his speech was a bit slurred due to losing teeth, Itachi still tried his best to explain the etiquette of the tea ceremony clearly.

He came from a prestigious family and had been influenced by his Clan Head father since childhood, encountering this knowledge early on.

"Itachi is correct."

Aburame Ryoma praised Itachi's words and calmly warned Dan, "Mr. Dan, Lord Danzo has deigned to lower himself. If you continue to act arrogantly, you need not enter."

"Uncle, let's go in quickly."

Itachi didn't want to embarrass Dan further. After speaking, he walked to the entrance, took off his shoes, and crawled inside.

However.

Dan remained unyielding.

He walked to the edge of the entrance, grabbed the lattice window above the opening, and pulled.

With a tearing sound.

Under Aburame Ryoma's astonished gaze, the entire window was pulled off by Dan and casually tossed aside.

"Now the hole is bigger."

Dan muttered to himself and, with his burly physique, walked towards the entrance and forcefully squeezed into the teahouse.

Aburame Ryoma's brow furrowed, and he followed. The two Root members stood guard at the entrance.

The teahouse was decorated simply.

Though small, it was fully equipped with tatami mats, a tea table, a brazier, and tea utensils. A flower arrangement was placed in the corner, and a scroll hung in the alcove, bearing the four characters "Harmony, Respect, Purity, Tranquility."

The owner of the teahouse, Danzo, was wearing a kimono and kneeling with his eyes closed at one end of the tea table, his back straight and his hands resting on his thighs.

He looked very formal.

Itachi approached Danzo silently and knelt opposite him in a standard posture, his expression serious and respectful.

Dan disliked kneeling.

So he plopped down next to his nephew, his massive weight of three hundred jin making the entire teahouse tremble.

It also made Danzo open his eyes.

From the moment he entered, Dan had acted as he pleased, completely disregarding the rules and committing every possible faux pas.

Danzo, however, seemed unfazed. He simply said to Dan slowly:

"Uchiha Dan, I finally meet you. You are indeed as the rumors say, a man who doesn't stand on ceremony."

"You flatter me, Lord Danzo."

Dan casually crossed his legs and got straight to the point, "You didn't call us here late at night just for tea, did you?"

"Don't rush, young man."

As Danzo spoke, he skillfully prepared tea, despite only his left arm being able to move. It was clear he was well-versed in the Way of Tea.

Soon.

A bowl of steaming, emerald-green matcha was pushed towards Dan by Danzo with one hand:

"Please."

"I don't like tea," Dan said.

"If you don't drink it, how will you know you don't like it?" Danzo said faintly, his words carrying a double meaning and a profound depth.

Dan frowned, but still picked up the tea bowl and drank it in one gulp.

"Ptooey!"

The moment the tea entered his mouth, Dan sensed its extreme bitterness and immediately couldn't help but spit it out, spraying Danzo opposite him in the face.

The next instant.

"How dare you!"

Several voices rang out simultaneously. Several Root Ninja appeared from nowhere, pressing their Ninja Swords, Kunai, and other weapons against Dan's neck.

A small teahouse could hide so many people.

"Stand down."

Danzo, however, did not show anger. He sternly ordered his subordinates. Then, he took out a handkerchief from his clothes and slowly wiped the bitter tea that had splashed on his face.

His asking Dan to drink tea was a test.

Danzo believed that Dan deliberately spitting tea on his face was just a childish provocation, something only a child would do.

This young man before him was all brawn and no brain, immature in personality.

Someone like this was actually the easiest to control.

"I'm sorry," Dan said, apologizing sincerely because he really couldn't hold back.

"It's fine."

Danzo forgave Dan's offense, remaining unperturbed and showing unfathomable depth and the demeanor of a Hokage Assistant.

He temporarily set Dan aside.

He brewed another bowl of bitter tea and pushed it towards Itachi, saying:

"Itachi, I told you your life would be filled with chaos. Drink this Clear Heart Tea; it can alleviate your inner anxiety and pain."

"Thank you, Lord Danzo."

Itachi's heart trembled. He bowed to Danzo from his seat, then cupped the teacup with both hands and brought it to his lips, drinking it in one gulp.

Danzo had been kind to him. Without his recommendation, he wouldn't have been able to join the Anbu.

He had also promised Danzo that he would be his eyes and ears, monitoring the Uchiha clan.

"Ugh..."

After drinking the bowl of matcha, Itachi's eyes suddenly widened, his cheeks puffed out, and he felt a strong sense of nausea and retching.

If he had only drunk the bitter tea, he could have endured it.

But what was fatal was that Itachi had just drunk a full liter of Chicken Breast Juice, and his stomach was already feeling unwell. Now, with a bowl of bitter tea entering his stomach, it was like "poison upon poison."

His stomach churned violently, and his complexion rapidly turned increasingly grim.

A few seconds later.

"Gag~"

Itachi finally couldn't hold it in and vomited a large pool of unknown liquid.

Yellow and green, with a chicken feces smell, a bitter taste, and the sour stench of digestive fluid... all mixed together, filling the small teahouse.

"I say, why did you still throw up?"

Dan saw this, and while frowning and patting Itachi's back, he sternly instructed his nephew, "If you do this, all the protein you consumed today will be lost. You must eat ten boiled egg whites when you go back tonight."

Seeing this scene, Danzo's face finally sank.

Was the tea he brewed really that hard to drink?

No, it was clear that this uncle and nephew had colluded and were deliberately disrespecting him.

Uchiha Dan was one thing, but what surprised Danzo was Itachi. He should have been respectful to him, yet now he was embarrassing him to his face.

Was he influenced by Dan?

He took a deep breath.

Danzo tried to calm his emotions, looked directly at Dan, and suddenly said:

"Dan, you should know that it was I who recommended Itachi for the Anbu, right?"

Dan nodded upon hearing this: "I just found out."

Danzo: "..."

He suppressed his anger and said again in a deep voice:

"To be honest, when the Second Hokage established the Police Force, it was actually to exclude the Uchiha clan from Konoha's power center.

Therefore, Hiruzen, Koharu, and Homura strongly opposed anyone from the Uchiha joining the Anbu, but I still vouched with my reputation and recommended Itachi.

Do you know why?"

"Why?" Dan pretended not to know and humbly asked for advice.